BIRDS. 
SPECIES III 
Sea Eagle, or Ofprey. JVil. orn. 59 * 
Rail fyn. av. 7. 
Dale Harw. 396. 
Martin's Hift. Weft. Ifles. p. 70. 
HIS fpecies is found in Ireland \ and 
feveral parts of Great-Britain ; the 
fpecimen we took our defcription from, 
was fhot in the county of Galway ; Mr. 
Willoughby tells us there was an aery of them in 
JVhinfield-parky JVeftmoreland ; and the eagle 
foaring in the air, with a cat in its talons, which 
Barlow drew from the very fa& which he faw in 
Scotland f, is of this kind. No writer fmce 
Clufius has defcribed the fea eagle : tho’ no un¬ 
common fpecies, it feems at prefent to be but little 
known ; being generally confounded with the 
golden eagle, to which it bears fome refemblance. 
The colors of the head, neck and body, are the 
fame with the latter ; but much lighter, the 
tawny part in this praedominating: in fize it is 
far fuperior : the bill is larger, more hooked, and 
more arched; underneath grow feveral ihort but 
ftrong hairs or briftles, forming a fort of beard. 
The interior fides, and the tips of the feathers of 
'«j~ Mr. Walpole's catalogue of engravtrs, p. 49. who adds, that the cat’s 
refiftance brought both animals to the ground, where Barlow took 
them up. 
SPECIES IV. 
Bald Buzzard. 011 . orn . 69. 
B. Buzzard, or Sea Eagle. Raii Jyn. 
av. 16. 
Filhing Hawk. Catesby Carol. I. 
Tab. 2. 
M R* Bay places this bird among the 
hawks, inftead of the eagles, on a 
fuppofition that Mr. Willoughby had 
exceeded in his account of its weight; but as 
63 
The Sea Eagle. 
Haliaeetos. Sib. Scot. 14. 
Aquila offifraga. Briffon av. I. 437. 
Pirn. Lib. 10. 
the tail, are of a deep brown ; the exterior fides, 
ferruginous. The legs are yellow, ftrong, and 
thick ; and feathered but little below the knees ; 
which is an invariable fpecific difference between 
this and our firft fpecies. This nakednefs of the 
legs is befides no fmall convenience to a bird who 
preys among the waters. The claws are of a deep 
andlhining black, exceeding large and ftrong, and 
hooked into a perfect femicircle. 
All writers agree, that this eagle feeds princi¬ 
pally on fiffi; which it takes as they are fwimming 
near the furface *, by darting itfelf down on 
them ; not by diving, or fwimming, as feveral 
authors have invented, who furnifti it for that 
purpofe with one web foot to fwim with; and 
another divided foot to take its prey with. Pliny , 
with his ufual elegance, defcribes the manner of 
its fifhing. Super eft halia'etos , clarijjimd oculo - 
rum acie , librans ex alto fefe^ vifoque in mari pifce , 
prone eps in eo mens , et difcujjis peSlore aquis rapiens . 
* Martin fpeaking of what he calls the great eagles in the weftern ifles, 
fays, that they'fatten their talons in the back of fifh, commonly of 
falmon, which are often above the Water, or on the furface. 
Ofprey. Plate A. I. 
Haliaetus feu aquila marina. Briffon 
av. I. 440. Tab. 34. 
Falco Haliaetus. Lin. jyfl. 91. 
Falco cyanopus. Klein ftem. Tab. 8. 
Haliaetus. Caii opufc. 85. 
Gefn. av. 804, 198. 
we had an opportunity of confirming the words of 
the latter, from one of this fpecies juft taken, we 
here reftore it to the aquiline rank, under the 
name of the ofprey: that was the name it was 
known 
